Akibiyori (1960)

User Rating:

8.3/10   

Director:

Yasujiro Ozu

Writers:

Ton Satomi (novel)
Kôgo Noda (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

November 1973 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

A widow try to marry off her daughter with the help of her late husband's three friends. |

Plot Keywords:

Literature | 1960s | Mother | Remarriage | Japanese

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

Setsuko Hara	...	Akiko Miwa
Yôko Tsukasa	...	Ayako Miwa
Mariko Okada	...	Yukiko Sasaki
Keiji Sada	...	Shotaru Goto
Miyuki Kuwano	...	Michiko
Shinichirô Mikami	...	Koichi
Shin Saburi	...	Soichi Mamiya
Chishu Ryu	...	Shukichi Miwa
Nobuo Nakamura	...	Shuzo Taguchi
Kuniko Miyake	...	Nobuko
Sadako Sawamura	...	Fumiko
Ryuji Kita	...	Seiichiro Hirayama
Fumio Watanabe	...	Tsuneo Sugiyama
Ayako Senno	...	Shigko Takamatsu
Yuriko Tashiro	...	Yoko

Also Known As:

Late Autumn (USA)

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | UK:PG (2007) | Spain:T

Filming Locations:

Tokyo Tower, Tokyo, Japan

Company:

Shôchiku Eiga

Movie Connections:

Remade as Swati (1986)

Soundtrack:

1st Movement

Late-Period Ozu Reworks "Late Spring" by Focusing on a Mother-Daughter Bonding

Even though the comparison is obviously intentional, Yasujiro Ozu's 1960 film is really a variation on his classic 1949 father-daughter drama, "Late Spring". He goes further with this parallel by having the wondrous Setsuko Hara, who played the daughter in the original film, play the mother in this one, even though only eleven years have elapsed. Gone is the alternately feisty, flirtatious and petulant manner that marked her earlier performance as Noriko, and in its place is that remarkable stillness and quiet warmth in her portrayal of Akiko that marked the best of Hara's later performances. She was barely forty during filming, yet she carries the gravitas of her role with uncommon ease. What remains consistent between her two performances is the unearthly devotion which ties the characters intractably to the world in which they have grown accustomed.

Ozu wrote the quietly perceptive script with longtime collaborator Kogo Noda, and the filmmaker's trademark touches - the narrative ellipses, the lack of melodrama, the low camera angles - are all here in their emotionally resonant glory. This time, the character of Akiko has such an easy sisterly bond with her daughter Ayako that neither has an interest in dating or marriage. While Akiko's situation is more or less accepted by society, Ayako's single status is a point of consternation, especially for three friends of Akiko's late husband, all of whom express feelings of unrequited love for the unavailable Akiko. They are jointly intent on finding Ayako a suitable husband and find one in Goto, a young, well-mannered bachelor with a suitable career. Akiko, however, demurs at the possibility of matrimony which leads the story through its inevitable paces.

Yôko Tsukasa is pretty and affecting as Ayako, though honestly no match for the younger Hara in the earlier film. More of that uninhibited spirit is present in Mariko Okada, who plays Ayako's friend and colleague Yuriko. She has a terrifically abrasive and amusing confrontation with the trio of embarrassed matchmakers, and the result comes across as a bit of an imbalance to the viewer now since Yuriko's Westernized independence is more compelling than Ayako's more innate diffidence. Adding more to the comedic aspects of the story, Shin Saburi, Nabuo Nakamura and Ryuji Kita play the matchmaking trio almost like a Shakespearean comedy troupe. Interestingly, Ozu uses a decidedly Italianate-sounding score to underscore the action, a nice unpredictable touch. This well-preserved film is not as essential as "Late Spring", but it is a worthy addition to Ozu's filmography.